antagonist
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antagonist
- /ænˈtæɡənɪst/ UK
- /ænˈtæɡənɪst/ Canada, US
- [ɛə̯nˈtæɡənɪst] Canada, US
- /ænˈtæɡənɪst/ Australia
Where it comes from
From Latin antagonista, from Ancient Greek ἀνταγωνιστής (antagōnistḗs, “opponent”) (ἀντί (antí, “against”) + ἀγωνιστής (agōnistḗs, “a combatant, pleader, actor”)), from ἀνταγωνίζομαι (antagōnízomai, “to antagonize”).
noun antagonists
- An opponent or enemy. our antagonists in these controversies
- One who antagonizes or stirs.
-
A chemical that binds to a receptor but does not produce a physiological response, blocking the action of other agonist chemicals, such as endogenous chemical messengers.
2001: The calcium antagonists represent one of the top ten classes of prescription drugs in terms of commercial value, with worldwide sales of nearly $10 billion in 1999. — Leslie Iversen, Drugs: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford 2001, p. 41)
Similar: blocker
- The main character or force opposing the protagonist in a literary work or drama. So God forbid I'm seen just as an average human being / I mean, imagine if antagonists lacked any evil scheme
- A muscle that acts in opposition to another. A flexor, which bends a part, is the antagonist of an extensor, which extends it.
Opposite: protagonist, agonist
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: adversary, opponent, adversarial, antagonistic, foe, conflicting, opposing, confrontational, phentolamine, saralasin, propranolol, prazosin, bicuculline, cimetidine, yohimbine, rival
noun
Opposite: protagonist, agonist
Translations
Every language
noun opponent
| Español | antagonista |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 對手 /对手 duìshǒu, 敵手 /敌手 díshǒu |
| हिन्दी | शत्रु śatru, विरोधी virodhī |
| Português | antagonista |
| Français | antagoniste |
| Deutsch | Antagonist, Widersacher, Gegner |
| Italiano | antagonista |
| Ελληνικά | ανταγωνιστής antagonistís |
| Română | antagonist, oponent |
| Русский | антагони́ст antagoníst |
| العربية | خَصْم ḵaṣm, عَدُوّ ʕaduww |
noun one who antagonizes
| Español | antagonista |
|---|---|
| Português | antagonista |
| Italiano | oppositore, avversario, concorrente |
| Ελληνικά | ανταγωνιστής antagonistís |
| Русский | антагони́ст antagoníst |
noun chemical
| 中文 | 拮抗劑 /拮抗剂 jiékàngjì |
|---|---|
| Português | antagonista |
| Deutsch | Antagonist |
| Italiano | antagonista |
| Ελληνικά | ανταγωνιστής antagonistís |
noun main character or force opposing the protagonist
| 日本語 | 敵役 |
|---|---|
| Français | antagoniste |
| Deutsch | Antagonist |
| Română | antagonist |
| العربية | غَرِيم ḡarīm, خَصْم ḵaṣm, شِرِّير širrīr |
noun muscle
| 中文 | 拮抗肌 jiékàngjī |
|---|
Talk about this word "antagonist." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/antagonist. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. antagonist. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/antagonist "antagonist." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/antagonist.Cite this
@misc{antagonist_2026,
title = {antagonist},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/antagonist},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
